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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. row — a line
  3. mark — a grade
  4. mark — a trace
  5. march — music
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. row — to paddle
  9. face — to confront
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. face — to point toward
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. march — the month
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. face — part of the head
  19. march — the month
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. prune — to trim
  24. pitcher — in baseball

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com